Arash Ferdowsi, left, and Drew Houston, seen on Thursday, April 14, 2011 in San Francisco, Calif., are the founders of Dropbox.

Photo: Russell Yip, The Chronicle

Arash Ferdowsi, left, and Drew Houston, seen on Thursday, April 14,...

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FILE - This file photograph taken Sept. 28, 2011, shows the Kindle Fire at a news conference, in New York. Research firm IHS said the Amazon.com Inc.'s Kindle Fire tablet, which started shipping this week, costs $201.70 to make, $2.70 more than Amazon charges for it.

TABLETS

Kindle Fire hurt by iPad demand

Amazon.com's Kindle Fire sales slumped in the first quarter as Apple's iPad widened its lead in the tablet market to 68 percent, according to IDC.

The Kindle Fire, which runs on Google's Android operating system, saw its share tumble to about 4 percent from 17 percent in the December period, the research firm said Thursday. Apple's market share climbed from 55 percent.

The Kindle Fire's price, at less than half that of Apple's cheapest iPad, helped Amazon grab the No. 2 spot in the market behind Apple in the Fire's debut quarter. Kindle devices have historically sold best in the December quarter, when consumers buy them as gifts, said Colin Gillis, an analyst at BGC Partners. Sales may also be dropping off as customers delay purchases of electronics in anticipation of newer versions, he said.

Total worldwide tablet shipments more than doubled to 17.4 million units in the first quarter, from 7.9 million units a year earlier. That followed a record 28.2 million units in the fourth quarter, lifted by holiday sales, IDC said. The 38.4 percent drop from the December quarter was steeper than the 34 percent decrease IDC predicted.

INTERNET

Yahoo CEO's record disputed

Yahoo investor Third Point, which is fighting for greater control of the Internet company's board, said Chief Executive Officer Scott Thompson embellished his computer-science education.

While Thompson lists a bachelor's degree in computer science from Stonehill College, the school didn't begin offering such a degree until four years after he graduated, Third Point said Thursday in an open letter to the board.

If Thompson inflated his credentials, it undermines his credibility as a technology expert and reflects poorly on his character, Third Point CEO Daniel Loeb said in the letter. "Now more than ever, Yahoo investors need a trustworthy CEO."

CLOUD COMPUTING

Dropbox pairs with Samsung

Dropbox, a provider of online storage, is partnering with Samsung Electronics to preload its application on smart phones and tablets running Google's Android operating system.

The app will come installed on Samsung devices distributed worldwide this year, said Lars Fjeldsoe-Nielsen, head of mobile business development at Dropbox. The announcement of the partnership with the San Francisco company was tied to a Samsung event Thursday in London.

Founded in 2007 by Drew Houston and Arash Ferdowsi, Dropbox has reached more than 50 million users by allowing them to synchronize and share files on any Web-enabled device. The app is available for download from Apple and Google online stores, and Dropbox is scouting for more partnership deals as it seeks to expand its customer base.

The company has already signed similar partnership deals for its app with HTC and Sony Ericsson, enabling users to get increased amounts of free storage when they buy the devices.